From his vantage on top of the earth’s highest peak—at 29,035 feet—Woolums reported that he and client, Cliff Dargonne, along with sherpas, Jangbu and Minga Chirri, had climbed through a storm that blew in making the going tough with lots of wind on the exposed summit ridge. "We couldn't even see the main summit from the south summit...looked up to see patches of blue sky and decided to push on," he recalled.

Until today, extreme winds had thwarted all previous summit attempts from the South Col this season. Two nights ago the Adventures International team hung back at camp IV even as more than 60 other climbers left camp for their summit bids; all to be turned around below the balcony. “We made a decision to wait and not go up to conserve our oxygen…for more favorable conditions to begin the final summit push,” Scott reported on his website.

Less than 48 hours earlier, on the morning of May 20th, Adventures International also saw a team to the summit of Lhotse, an 8000 meter peak adjacent to Everest. Local Hood River guide, John Rust, and client, Lorenzo Gariano, topped out on the summit of the world’s 4th highest peak accompanied by Pasang Nuru and Pemba Chirri.

This is Scott’s second summit on Everest; he guided a successful expedition in May 2002. He was very confident and optimistic about the current expedition. “This is the style of trip (I) believe in: small, well organized, experienced, easy to manage and focused on climbing the mountain not the politics surrounding it,” he said before his departure in late March.

An accomplished high altitude guide, with 25 years experience, he has previously guided 17 Himalayan climbs including summits of Pumori, Ama Dablam, Great Trango Tower, and Cho Oyo, plus 26 expeditions on Aconcagua and a record 30 summits of McKinley on 42 ascents.

In 1991, Woolums founded his own business--Adventures International Inc.—specializing in unique travel opportunities from hut to hut treks into some of the world’s most remote regions to extreme climbing expeditions and high altitude mountaineering. The company offers trips in South America, Asia, and Africa; as well as more remote destinations including climbs of the “seven summits” (the highest points on each of the 7 continents): Aconcagua, Carstensz Pyramid, Elbrus, Everest, Kilimanjaro, McKinley, and Vinson on Antarctica.

While the summit marks the culmination of the team’s activities, they have been in Nepal for the past 9 weeks acclimatizing and ferrying supplies up the mountain. For details about the Everest experience, check out the live expedition reports—a series of dispatches including images, audio and video clips, Scott transmitted throughout the expedition—posted on his website: www.ExploreYourPlanet.com

We would like to thank our sponsors for helping with the enormous task of providing equipment, resources and believing in our efforts to attempt the summit of Everest. Thank you for supporting the Adventures International Everest 2003 Expedition.